Entertainment and Sports Law
Our lawyers actually work in the entertainment industry as producers, authors and literary agents. We understand the sports and entertainment industries on a practical level in a way that few can match.Our lawyers working in the realm of sports law are also deeply involved and highly informed in several key areas.
- Attorney Jamey Newberg covers the Texas Rangers as a contributing sportswriter on the Dallas-Fort Worth staff of The Athletic, a national sports website.
- Attorney Sally Helppie is an award-winning independent film producer with four features to her credit. She is Chair of the Texas Entertainment & Sports Law Section and teaches two industry courses in the Division of Film & Media Arts at Southern Methodist University (SMU).
Entertainment Law
Our lawyers regularly work on high-budget Hollywood films (e.g., "Hugo" and "The Tourist"), Texas independent features (e.g., "Windsor" and "9 th Floor: Quest for the Ancient Relic"), television series (e.g., "Anger Management" and "The Glee Project") and publishing matters (e.g., the "Hook Runyon" series, "Fifty Shades of Grey" litigation, and sale of film rights to the nonfiction book "The Free State of Jones," with the movie starring Matthew McConaughey).We represent producers and production companies, directors, Internet platforms, financiers, exhibitors, writers, actors, musicians, creators and amusement parks.
As importantly, our entertainment attorneys are seasoned litigators with decades of collective experience in both state and federal courts, mediation and arbitration. Because we know how, when and why disputes arise, we are better prepared to negotiate and draft agreements on the front end. We also know the practicalities of how things really work in the industry, which enables us to better protect our clients when resolving disputes.
We advise on nearly all aspects of entertainment law, including:
- Copyright
- Trademark
- New media and digital platforms
- Book publishing and options
- Insurance and bonds
- Guild and union matters
- DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act)
- COPPA (Children's Online Privacy Protection Act)
- Infringement of rights
- General liability
Sports Law
Our sports law team has expertise in meeting the unique demands of business transactions and litigation, including general liability, in the professional sports world. We have been selected to work with franchises and individual clients in a variety of professional sports. While our primary efforts are focused on franchises and their facilities, we also handle the nonagent business needs of professional athletes.Our attorneys regularly serve sports law clients with a comprehensive team of business, finance, real estate, construction and intellectual property attorneys.